Thrash Metal

I have decided to post these discography reviews separately for organisational reasons, and to make them stand out and be easier to find. So here goes, my second discography review! The hope is that it promotes discussion and interaction, whilst being somewhat interesting to read along the way xD. So feel free to leave your opinions, whether you agree with me or otherwise!

If you have been following along with my posts, you will know I have paused my usual exploration of the genre and gone back to basics. Early on in my journey into thrash metal, I skipped the obvious choices and opted for whatever piqued my interest, regardless of popularity. While there is clearly nothing wrong with this, the few times I had discussed thrash with others, I found there were gaps in my knowledge, namely the big 4. I know, I know, I'm not a fan of the term either, but there is no denying the fact that many thrash bands are often compared to those in the big 4. I suppose it makes it a tad easier to explore genres you are unfamiliar with. Because of this I made the decision to completely stop listening to new bands until I had cleared the US big 4 and the teutonic big 4 bands off my list (yes, I literally have a list of bands I need to listen to). I have heard all bands now excluding Destruction and up until now, Megadeth!

To be completely honest, I was dreading tackling this discography, and I put off doing it for a while. Having just tackled Kreator and Tankard, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to opt for something a little different. Thankfully it didn't take too long. Unfortunately this was for the wrong reasons. I found myself skipping through many songs which I simply weren't enjoying. I had previously tried getting into Megadeth to no avail. If I had put my finger on the main reason for this, it would be Mustaine's vocals. To me they are almost unbearable. They sometimes remind me of a mad conspiracy theorist's incoherent ramblings. When he is not simply speaking the lyrics, the more energetic side of his delivery just doesn't do it for me - far too nasal-y. I think there were many occasions where I enjoyed a song (instruments alone) but the vocal delivery ruined it for me. That said, there were a few albums which didn't suffer from this problem, namely, their debut, and Rust in Peace. As someone with a taste for the old-school, rough-around-the-edges style, the debut scratches that itch. The latter of the two is an excellent album. Not only does it showcase the skills and technical proficiency of the band, but it also displays their brilliant creativity too. Disappointingly, creativity is something I found lacking on many releases, particularly from the middle of their career to present. Countdown to Extinction had a few good ideas and moments, but was plagued by the more mainstream sound and simplicity, clearly an attempt to appeal to a wider audience (no doubt this attempt worked). I found this turn in direction an odd decision, especially considering the success of the Rust in Peace formula. Youthanasia largely suffered the same fate. Cryptic Writings and most records following this release were far from the highs of Megadeth earlier in their career. Most consisted of some wild tangent Mustaine likely led the group on. There were a few diamonds in the rough, such as Endgame (though not really my cup of tea) and Dystopia. I saw a glimmer of hope with Dystopia, which was a step back towards their old ways. It didn't fully deliver for me, it had a problem in common with a large amount of modern thrash today: material sounding too alike and void of emotion or variety. Despite this return to the "old way of doing things" their latest release The Sick, the Dying... and the Dead!, failed to capture any of my interest.

Overall, while Megadeth seriously performs at their peak, the rest of their material ranged from mediocre to bad, in some places. I found I added 2-3 songs to my playlist from most albums. I added very little, if any, from some of their worst efforts, such as: Risk, United Abominations, The World Needs a Hero, Super Collider, Th1rt3en, The System has Failed, The Sick, the Dying... and the Dead!

THE ESSENTIALS:

• Killing is my Business... and Business is Good!
• Rust in Peace.

AVOID UNLESS COMPLETIONIST:

• See list above.

SOME OF MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:

• Mechanix (Killing is my Business... and Business is Good!).
• Rattlehead (Killing is my Business... and Business is Good!).
• Chosen Ones (Killing is my Business... and Business is Good!).
• Wake Up Dead (Peace Sells... But Who's Buying?).
• Five Magics (Rust in Peace).
• Hangar 18 (Rust in Peace).
• Tornado of Souls (Rust in Peace).

Thanks for reading! 🤘